A Modular Wall Mounting Apparatus

ABSTRACT

The configurable wall mount presented herein has particular applicability to supporting electronic devices mounted in walls and ceilings. The configurability stems from modular components configured to be coupled together. Thus, the wall mount is configurable for mounting devices ranging from small communications connectors to large electronic control panels.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates configurable mounts for electronicdevices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Mounting brackets or “Mud Rings” are used in a variety of settings andlocations to mount electronic equipments, e.g., cables, to walls. Priorart mud ring configurations were commonly of a fixed size (usuallymeasured by the number of “Gangs”). Thus, a user must purchase aseparate mud ring for each application.

Mounting brackets are indispensable because they facilitate installationof electronic equipments without attachment to wall studs. Thus,equipments can be placed practically anywhere on a wall or ceiling aslong as one can run the necessary cables to the location. A user needingto mount one cable may cut an opening the size of one-gang for theinstallation. Standard mounting brackets will usually handle theone-gang opening. However, needing to mount more cables may need to cutother openings in the wall to install other mounting brackets. Thisbecomes aesthetically not pleasing when it is the same type of cablethat is being installed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is a configurable wall mount bracket. The mount hasparticular applicability to supporting electronic devices mounted inwalls and ceilings. The configurability of the present invention stemsfrom three modular components configured to be couplable together. Thus,the wall mount or mounting bracket is configurable for mounting devicesranging from a small communications connector to large electroniccontrol panels.

Other embodiments of the wall mount may be configured to suit virtuallyany mounting application. For instance, instead of having modular piecesthat increase the size by one-gang, the extension pieces may beconfigured to increase the size by half-gang. In addition, the height ofthe wall mount may be made configurable by configuring the end plates toaccept extension members at the base wall.

Further objects, features, and advantages of the present invention overthe prior art will become apparent from the detailed description of thedrawings which follows, when considered with the attached figures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a top view of a two-gang wall mount in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1B is a side view of a wall mount in accordance with the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 1A; and

FIG. 1C is a front view of a wall mount in accordance with theembodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A; and

FIG. 1D is a perspective view of a wall mount in accordance with theembodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A; and

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an end plate member 30 of a configurablewall mount in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a flag member 40 of a configurable wallmount in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an extension member 50 of a configurablewall mount in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an extension member 101 of aconfigurable wall mount in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a one-gang configuration inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a three-gang configuration inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a four-gang configuration inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention comprises a configurable apparatus for mounting devices,such as electronic equipment, to a support structure. In the followingdescription, numerous specific details are set forth in order to providea more thorough description of the present invention. It will beapparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present inventionmay be practiced without these specific details. In other instances,well-known features have not been described in detail so as not toobscure the invention.

In general, the invention is a configurable wall mount. The width of thewall mount is configurable using modular components to a size suitablefor the mounting application. Thus, the mount is configurable formounting devices ranging from a small communications connector to largeelectronic control panels. In one or more configurations, the mount maybe configured for mounting a plurality of communications connectors andother electronic equipments having a height similar to that of theconfigurable mount.

The mount has particular applicability to supporting electronic devicesmounted in walls, and as such the mount is sometimes referred to hereinas a wall mount, though it will be understood that the mount and methodtherein have other applicability and thus the descriptor “wall” such asused in the term “wall mount,” is not intended to be limiting.

One embodiment of configurable wall mount 20 will be described withreference to FIGS. 1 through 5. As illustrated, configurable wall mount20 comprises a pair of end plates 30; a plurality of locking flags 40and screws 60; and zero or more extension plates (e.g. plate 50 and 101)on each side. Each member of configurable wall mount 20 may be made ofplastic, metal, or any other structurally capable material.

End plate 30 is a u-shape member comprising base 31, a first leg 32 atone end, and a second leg 33 at the other end. End plate 30 furtherincludes a top face 27 and a bottom face 28, and a flange 34, which runsalong the entirety of an inside periphery of end plate 30 at said bottomface 28, and extends outwardly perpendicular from said bottom face 28.The depth of flange 34 (i.e. extension from bottom surface 28 to the tip35) is preferably equivalent to or less than the thickness of themounting surface to which wall mount 20 is adapted to be used. Forsimplicity in manufacturing, it should be noted that the dept of flange34 may be a standard fixed size.

Endplate 30 further comprises a plurality of optional apertures 22 and25. Optional aperture 22 is for mounting wall mount 20 to a surface suchas a podium or the side of a cabinet, while optional aperture 25 may beused for mounting a face plate. Optional apertures 22 and 25 may also beused to mount an electrical switch or duplex outlet. Preferably, theseapertures should line up with holes found in standard electrical backboxes.

The free end of first leg 32 is adapted to couple to a structural memberwith similar configuration as the free end of second leg 33. Inaddition, the width of first leg 32 is preferably equivalent to thewidth of second leg 33. The first leg 32 further comprises a pluralityof apertures 23 and 24. Aperture 24 is located closer to the free end offirst leg 32 and provides means for coupling with other members, e.g.,second leg 33 of a second end plate 30 or an extension plate. Aperture23 is located between base 31 and aperture 24 and provides means forsecuring flag 40 to end plate 30. Aperture 23 is integral to slide post36.

Slide post 36 is coupled to bottom face 28 and extends parallel toflange 34 and ends at tip 29. Slide post 36 further includes aperture 23which runs the entirety of its length starting from top face 27 and endsat its tip 29. Slide post 36 is preferably half-cylindrical in shape andaperture 23 preferably opens up (i.e. includes cutout 27) beyond bottom35 of flange 34 to allow flag 40, which is secured by screw 60, to swingaway from the mounting surface when screw 60 is turned in its unlockingdirection. Thus, aperture 23 provides means through which screw 60 maybe used to adjustably lock flag 40 in place.

Cutout 27 in slide post 36 allows flag 40 to swing inwards, i.e.,towards the inside periphery of end plate 30 to facilitate installationto a mounting surface. Operation of flag 40 during installation isfurther discussed below.

The second leg 33 comprises a plurality of apertures 22, 23, 25 and 38.Aperture 38 is located closer to the free end of leg 33 and providesmeans for coupling with other members, e.g., first leg 32 of a secondend plate 30 or one end of an extension plate which is configured forcoupling therein (e.g. configured as free end of first leg 32). Aperture23 is located between base 31 and aperture 38 and provides means forsecuring flag 40 to end plate 30.

Second leg 33 further comprises a second flange 26 and a second slidepost 36 which are coupled to bottom face 28 and extend parallel toflange 34. Second flange 26 is preferably located closer to the outsideperiphery of the top plate of second leg 33 such that second slide post36 is located within the bounds created by flange 34 and flange 26.Second slide post 36 is preferably configured similar to first slidepost 36 located on first leg 32.

Aperture 38 is preferably threaded to hold screw 70 in cylinder 39.Cylinder 39 is coupled to bottom face 28 which is at the free end ofsecond leg 33 and extends outwardly and perpendicular to bottom face 28.Cylinder 39 further includes a top plate 89. Thus, aperture 38 runsperpendicular to bottom face 28 starting at top plate 89. In addition,it should be noted that the free end of first leg 32 is preferablyconfigured to couple to any other structural member having aconfiguration equivalent to the free end of second leg 33.

Flag 40 comprises a vertical plate section 45, a cylindrical section 51that is substantially equal in height to vertical plate section 45 andcoupled to one end of vertical plate section 45, and a foot section 43(e.g., a flange) coupled to the top of a second end of vertical platesection 45. Foot section 43 may be serrated at its top face to providegrip when in contact with an inside face of the mounting surface.Cylindrical section 51 further comprises threaded aperture 41 which isconfigured for holding screw 60. As illustrated in FIG. 1C, flag 40 ismovably coupled with cylinder 36 using screw 60 such that the top faceof its foot section 43 (e.g. serrated surface) faces bottom face 28 ofend plate 30.

Flag 40 further comprises flange 46 to provide additional strengtheningfor plate 45 and foot section 43 to prevent buckling when wall mount 20is mounted to a support structure.

Wall mount 20 further comprises one or more optional extension plates 50and 101 representing different incremental box sizes. For instance,extension plate 50 may represent a one-gang increase in size for themounting bracket illustrated herein, while extension plate 101 mayrepresent a two-gang increase. It should be apparent to those of skillin the art that these example sizes are just for illustration purposesonly. Also, it should be apparent that the configuration and size of theend plate member and extension plate member is not fixed to thoseillustrated herein. For instance, the extension plate member may beconfigured in a variety of sizes to provide the flexibility to furtherconfigure the mounting bracket.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, extension plate 50 is a linear membercomprising a first end portion 61 and a second end portion 63. Thethickness and width of extension plate 50 is equivalent to that of firstand second leg members 32 and 33. In addition, first end portion 61 ispreferably configured to have identical shape as the free end of firstleg 32. And, second end portion 63 is preferably configured to haveidentical shape as the free end of second leg portion 33.

Extension plate 50 further includes a top plate having a top face 72 anda bottom face 73, and a flange 71, which runs along the entirety of aninside periphery of extension plate 50 at said bottom face 73, andextends outwardly perpendicular from said bottom face 73. The depth andthickness of flange 71 (i.e. extension from bottom surface 73 to thetip) is preferably equivalent to the depth and thickness of flange 34 ofend plate 30. In addition, the width of extension plate 50 is preferablyequivalent to the width of the legs of end plate 30.

Extension plate 50 comprises a plurality of apertures 62, 64, andoptionally 65. Optional aperture 65 may be used for mounting a faceplate to a wall mount configured with extension plate 50 and shouldpreferably line up with holes found in standard electrical back boxeswhen extension plate 50 is installed as part of wall mount 20.

Extension plate 50 further includes a second flange 69 which runs alongthe entirety and towards the middle periphery of extension plate 50 atsaid bottom face 73, and extends outwardly perpendicular from saidbottom face 73. The depth and thickness of flange 69 (i.e. extensionfrom bottom surface 73 to the tip) is preferably equivalent to the depthand thickness of flange 71. Flange 69 further runs parallel to flange 71and is configured to provide additional rigidity for extension member50.

End portion 61 is adapted to couple to a structural member configured asfree end portion of second leg 33 of endplate 30. End portion 63 isadapted to couple to a structural member configured as free end portionof first leg 32 of endplate 30. In addition, the width of the top plateof extension plate 50 is preferably equivalent to the width of top plateof the legs of end plate 30.

Aperture 62 is located closer to the end 61 and provides means forcoupling with other members, e.g., second leg 33 of end plate 30 or end63 of a second extension plate. Aperture 64 is located at end 63 andprovides means for securing flag 40 to extension plate 50 using screw60. Aperture 64 is further integrated into slide post 68.

Slide post 68 is coupled to bottom face 73 and extends parallel toflanges 69, 71. Slide post 68 is preferably configured as slide post 36of endplate 30. Thus, slide post 68 includes aperture 64 which runs theentirety of its length starting from top face 72 and ends at the freetip of slide post 68.

Slide post 68 is preferably half-cylindrical in shape and aperture 64preferably opens up (i.e. includes cutout 72) beyond bottom 35 of flange69 to allow flag 40, which is secured by screw 60, to swing away fromthe mounting surface when screw 60 is turned in its unlocking direction.Thus, aperture 64 provides means through which screw 60 may be used toadjustably lock flag 40 in place.

Aperture 66 is preferably threaded to hold screw 70 in cylinder 67 forsecuring extension plate 50 to any end portion of any member configuredsimilar to first leg 32 of endplate 30. Cylinder 67 is coupled to thefree end of end portion 63 and extends from the bottom face 73 of thetop plate of extension member 50. Preferably, the top of cylinder 67,which includes a top plate 74, may not exceed the bottom face 73 ofextension member 50. Since end 61 is configured to mate with any memberconfigured similar to second leg 32 of endplate 30 (e.g. end 63),cylinder 67 and its top plate 74 are configured to fit into chamber 75so that apertures 62, 24 line up with aperture 66, 38 when extensionmember 50 is coupled to wall mount 20.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of extension plate member 101. As illustrated,extension plate member 101 is similar in configuration to extensionplate member 50 with the exception that extension plate member 101 islonger and represents a two-gang increase in wall mount 20 wheninstalled. Extension plate member 101 may further include a secondmounting hole 65 for faceplates.

One configuration of wall mount 20 is illustrated in FIG. 1D using thebuilding blocks described herein. As illustrated, two end plates 30(A,B) are coupled with two extension plates 50 (A,B) and four flags 40(A,B,C,D) to form wall mounting bracket 20. The first leg 32A of thefirst end plate 30A is coupled to second end 63 of extension plate 50Busing a first screw 70A; and the second leg 33B of the second end plate30B is coupled to first end 61 of extension plate 50B using a secondscrew 70B. The first leg 32B of the second end plate 30B is coupled tosecond end 63 of a second extension plate 50A using a third screw 70C;and the second leg 33A of the first end plate 30A is coupled to firstend 61 of the second extension plate 50A using a fourth screw 70D.Finally, flags 40 (A,B,C,D) are coupled into guide posts 36 (A,B,C,D)using one screw 60 for each flag.

As illustrated in the assembled configuration of FIGS. 1A-1D, wall mount20 is ring-shaped, i.e., with an open window 100, and configured to fitaround an opening in a mounting structure, e.g., a wall, a podium, etc.Flange 34 extends into the opening in the mounting surface. A pluralityof flags 40 act in combination with bottom face 28 of plate 30 toprovide a vise grip thus coupling the mounting bracket 20 to themounting structure.

In operation, a user may cut a rectangular opening in the mountingstructure, e.g. a wall, suitable for the mounting task. For instance,the task could be for mounting of a two-gang electrical box. Thus, ifthe extension plate 50 is configured for one gang increment, then wallmount 20 may be assembled using two end plates 30, two extension plates50, and four flags 40 to obtain a configuration to fit the opening. Wallmount 20 is then placed in the opening with the flags flipped inwards.Finally, tightening of screws 60 rotates the flags outwards so that theyare guided through aperture 23 towards the back face 28 until the footof the flag and the bottom face of end plate 20 form a vise grip on thelip of the mounting structure opening.

It will be apparent to those of skill in the arts that using members 30,40, and any combination of extension members 50 and 101, wall mount 20is configurable to virtually any size. For instance, FIG. 6 is anillustration wherein no extension plate is used to configure wall mount600. In such configuration, it may be desirable to only use a pair offlag 40's for the mounting task. Also, an embodiment illustrating athree-gang wall mount is shown in FIG. 7. In this illustration, thetwo-gang increase is achieved by using one extension plate 101 insteadof two extension plates 50. Thus, the wall mount is relatively morerigid because it has less members being coupled together than if towextension plate 50's are used.

Further, an embodiment illustrating a four-gang configuration is shownin FIG. 8. This configuration uses a combination of extension plates 50and 101. Thus, any size mounting bracket may be configured usingcombinations of extension plates 50 and 101. Also, note that any numberof flags 40 may be used for mounting so long as there are availableguide posts to handle them.

It will be understood that the above described arrangements of apparatusand the method therefrom are merely illustrative of applications of theprinciples of this invention and many other embodiments andmodifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention as defined in the claims.

1. A configurable mounting bracket comprising: a pair of end plates,each of said end plate having a base, a first leg at one end, and asecond leg at an opposite end, wherein said first leg of one of said endplates is couplable to a second leg of another of said end plates, saidend plate further having a top face and a bottom face, and a flangerunning entirely along an inside periphery of said end plate at saidbottom face, said flange extending outwardly perpendicular from saidbottom face, said end plate further having a plurality of apertures anda slide post; and a plurality of locking flags, wherein each of saidplurality of locking flags is couplable to said end plate through saidslide post using a first screw in one of said plurality of apertures,each of said plurality of locking flags including a foot for providinggrip when said first screw is tightened.
 2. The configurable mountingbracket in accordance with claim 1 wherein said end plate is u-shaped.3. The configurable mounting bracket in accordance with claim 1 whereina first one of said pair of end plates is coupled to a second one ofsaid pair of end plates to form a mounting bracket.
 4. The configurablemounting bracket in accordance with claim 1, further comprising at leastone extension plate, each of said extension plate having a third end anda fourth end, wherein said third end is couplable to said first end ofsaid end plate, and said fourth end is couplable to said second end ofsaid end plate.
 5. The configurable mounting bracket in accordance withclaim 1, further comprising at least one element configured to causesaid foot of said flag and bottom of said end plate to move towards oneanother to lock them to a mounting structure.
 6. The configurablemounting bracket in accordance with claim 5 wherein said elementconfigured to cause said foot of said flag and bottom of said end plateto move towards one another comprises a threaded fastener extendingbetween said top end of said end plate and said flag.
 7. A configurablemounting bracket comprising: a pair of end plates, each of said endplates configured to be couplable to a second one of said pair of endplates to form a mud ring, said end plate further having a plurality ofapertures and a slide post; and a plurality of locking flags configuredto be couplable to said end plate through said slide post using a firstscrew in one of said plurality of apertures, each of said plurality oflocking flags including a foot for providing grip when said first screwis tightened.
 8. The configurable mounting bracket in accordance withclaim 7 wherein said end plate further comprises: a base; a first leg atone end of said base; a second leg at an opposite end of said base,wherein said first leg of one of said end plates is couplable to asecond leg of another of said end plates; a top face and a bottom face;a flange running entirely along an inside periphery of said end plate atsaid bottom face, said flange extending outwardly perpendicular fromsaid bottom face.
 9. The configurable mounting bracket in accordancewith claim 7 wherein said end plate is u-shaped.
 10. The configurablemounting bracket in accordance with claim 7 wherein a first one of saidpair of end plates is coupled to a second one of said pair of end platesto form a mounting bracket.
 11. The configurable mounting bracket inaccordance with claim 8, further comprising at least one extensionmember, each of said extension member having a third end and a fourthend, wherein said third end is couplable to said first end of said endplate, and said fourth end is couplable to said second end of said endplate.
 12. The configurable mounting bracket in accordance with claim 8,further comprising at least one element configured to cause said foot ofsaid flag and bottom of said end plate to move towards one another tolock them to a mounting structure.
 13. The configurable mounting bracketin accordance with claim 12 wherein said at least one element comprisesa threaded fastener extending between said top end of said end plate andsaid flag.